. >> nick paton walsh went into the pakistan border with u.s. troops and here is what they found. >> reporter: in eastern afghanistan, it looks like this. americans pushing the afghans to the front, taking the high ground and impossible to police. the pressure for less americans here is extreme. but the afghans only mustered five men for this patrol. >> when you shoot it has to be five to seven-round bursts and let it go. >> reporter: despite this training, policing the local villages. let alone, taking on the terrorists network america came here to eradicate. here that afghanistan's future looks a lot like its past. american control does not extend up in this valley and high on the ridge lines they found safe havens for lked lk. u.s. and afghanistan officials are revealed to cnn they located here al qaeda fighters using the s secluded villages. air-lifted in americans were forced in and they faced a nastier fight than planned. u.s. officials say they killed 120 insurgents and top leaders, many taliban, but several of them arabs linked to al qae